At a time when the rupee is witnessing unprecedented depreciation as compared to US dollar, the jewellers in city are doing their bit to put a stop on rupee's further plunge by stopping the sale of gold bars and coins.

On a call by All-India Gems and Jewellery Trade Federation, the members of Ludhiana Jewellers Association have stopped the sale of gold bars and coins. With the jewellers not purchasing gold bars and coins, their sale is expected to come to a naught in the next few days.

General secretary of Ludhiana Jewellers Association, Manoj Dhanda, said almost all the 120 members of the association had stopped selling gold bars and coins and persuading customers to buy gold in the form of jewellery only. “The sale of gold bars and coins is almost negligible in the past few days. The stock of same is almost exhausted and we are not purchasing new bars and coins,” he said, adding that since the practice was being followed by jewellers across India, the effect is visible as the gold imports have decreased by over 78% in the past few days.

He said the step was necessary because if the situation worsens any further, the government can put a blanket ban on gold import, which may create raw material scarcity for them.

Franchise holder of Tanishq Jewellers, Ashim Nagpal, said he had received a letter from the head office, asking him to stop sale of gold bars and coins. “We will sell bars and coins till the stock lasts. Most probably we will be left with no stock by July 15. We are also persuading customers to buy gold in the form of jewellery,” he said.The value of rupee against the US Dollar stood at Rs 61 on Monday.